The hotel's deck, a spot open to the public for bat watching and adjacent to the hotel's restaurant, would be built on the city's parkland. The proposed, 2,400-square-foot deck would expand a 1,125-square-foot deck that the Radisson has used since 1993.

The new deck would have 140 seats, and have an additional 320-square-foot lower tier with no restaurant seating. A previous presentation to the city's Parks and Recreation Board put the total investment for the deck at $600,000 and raised the possibility that the city and the Radisson would sign a revenue sharing contract for the operation of a restaurant on city parkland.

In 1993, the Radisson and the city of Austin signed an agreement to build ta 1,125-square-foot deck on the property. The area was open to the public and commercial sales were prohibited on the deck itself. The deal was in place for two 10-year terms until the deck was removed in September 2013, according to city documents.

Under that deal, the Radisson also agreed to maintain the slope down to the adjacent trail as well as a build $300,000 concrete staircase. The new deck proposal would add Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility to the lower deck from Congress Avenue.

In October of 2013, the Parks and Recreation Board recommended the negotiate a revenue contract with the Radisson for the deal. Austin's City Council will set a public hearing for the new deck's agreement at its upcoming Jan. 23 meeting. The suggested date is Feb. 27, 2014, 4:00 p.m.

Robert Grattan covers government, courts and economic development for the Austin Business Journal.

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